The display is open 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. weekdays, at the University of Illinois Press, 1325 S. Oak St. in Champaign.  There will be a special reception with light refreshments on Friday, April 5, from 3:00-5:00 p.m.   All viewings, and the reception, are free and open to the public.

Featured in this year’s show are two covers designed for University of Illinois Press books: Sonic Persuasion: Reading Sound in the Recorded Age (author Greg Goodale) and From Jim Crow to Jay-Z: Race, Rap, and the Performance of Masculinity (author Miles White).

A high quality catalog shows each entry in full color with typographic, paper, printing, and binding information, along with designers’ and judges’ comments.  A limited number of catalog copies will be available for free.

Events this year include:

• An online exhibit called Fine Print* (*and Digital!). A gallery of books, journals, digital collections, and reference works exemplifying the work of AAUP members.
• A blog tour, featuring writings from the perspectives of 26 member presses and their authors.
• Influence maps highlighting the geographical spread of University Presses, both in their physical locations and in their subjects.

Check back with us Wednesday when we take our turn hosting the blog tour with a post by  folklorist Stephen Wade on the value of “humane scholarship” through the work of University Presses.

We will be at the Association for the Study of African American Life and History (ASALH) meeting from September 26-30, in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. We will have authors signing books all afternoon Friday, September 28 at our booths, #19 & 20.

1:00–2:00  Jacqueline McLeod, Daughter of the Empire State: The Life of Judge Jane Bolin

2:00–3:00  Julie Gallagher, Black Women and Politics in New York City

3:00–4:00  Felix Armfield, Eugene Kinckle Jones: The National Urban League and Black Social Work, 1910-1940

4:00–5:00  Darlene Clark Hine and John McCluskey Jr., eds., The Black Chicago Renaissance

Stop by and say, “Hello!”

And as we mentioned earlier in this blog, we will be at the International Bluegrass Music Association’s World of Bluegrass Week, which runs from September 24-30, 2012, in Nashville, Tennessee. Celebrate Josh Graves’ 85th Birthday with Fred Bartenstein, editor of Bluegrass Bluesman, Thursday, September at 1:00 pm, University of Illinois Press Booth, #223.

This year, the cookie swap went big-time.  Press-wide.  Some of us started our cookie or candy preparations Sunday, but others were up awfully late last night to prepare for this inaugural swap.  There were 18 participants, with gorgeous and tasty contributions ranging from buckeyes to mascarpone thumbprint cookies filled with fig jam.  It didn’t take long for everyone to dive in and divvy up the treats, and we had plenty left over to share.

In deciding what to make for today’s event, I consulted my beloved Betty Crocker Cooky Book, a 1963 classic passed down from my grandmother, plus all my usual food blog haunts.  I had a list of options.  Then an e-mail offer from King Arthur Flour came in.  Those crafty marketing folks at King Arthur include pictures and links to recipes in their messages, and I couldn’t help but follow through to the blog post about Chocolate Bon Bon Drops.  In addition to cookie instructions, KAF staffer MaryJane Robbins writes about her brush with the famed Wellesley Cookie Exchange, now in its 38th year, if my calculations are correct.  I was so charmed by the whole post that Chocolate Bon Bon Drops became my holiday cookie this year.

At the moment, I’m not keen to bake cookies again soon, but after the fabulous cookies, recipes, and baking talk today, I know I’ll be there for the 2nd Annual University of Illinois Press Cookie Swap.  I’ll keep my Cooky Book handy.

There will be a reception on Wednesday, September 23, 4-5:30 p.m.

Classes and groups are invited to visit; for information call Cope Cumpston at 217-333-9227.

This weekend we’ll be selling books and featuring a dozen or so of our authors at the Chicago Tribune Printers Row Lit Fest–billed as the Midwest’s Largest Literary Event. Come and see us at the University of Illinois tent.

Carol Bolton Betts retired on Tuesday. As good copy editors do, she knew what to look for in a manuscript, saw things that most do not, and excelled in the collaborative process of making a book. Her long and productive career at the Press was marked by technical skill, curiosity, professionalism, and a well-honed sense of humor. Co-workers benefited not only from numerous batches of killer brownies but also from the opportunity to travel the world via one of the Midwest’s larger collections of snow globes. She’ll be missed.

Last evening more than 120 guests gathered at the President’s House in Urbana to celebrate ninety years of publishing by the University of Illinois Press. As President Joe White said in his comments, it was just about as perfect an autumn evening in central Illinois as one could hope for.

Here are some shots from our Press photogs:

Roberta and Maggie await the first arrivals.

Guests gather on the patio.

Cool jazz in the drawing room.

Vice President Meena Rao, Press Director Bill Regier, President Joe White.

Associate Director Joan Catapano, Dr. Rao, and guests.

A buffet to remember.

Chancellor Herman and guests.

Listen up.

 
UIC staff distribute anniversary bags.

Attendees listen to Professor Eric Arnesen’s presentation. 

(Photo of Eric Arnesen speaking was too dark to post. Cue professional photographer for the Urbana reception.)